Cfte  liftrarp 

of  t|)e 

Dittt0ton  of  ^ealtl)  af{air0 
anitiet0itp  of  Bom  Carolina 


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m.m. 


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in  2009  witln  funding  from 

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http://www.archive.org/details/addressbeforemedOOcame 


\ 


AN  ADDRESS 


BEFORE    THE 


MlDICAl  SOCIETY  OP  TBI  STATE 


OF 


NORTH  CAROLINA, 

AT 

ITS  FIRST    ANNUAL    COMMUNICATION, 

IN  RALEIGH,  APRIL  1850. 
BY  THOMAS   N.  CAMERON,   M.   D. 


RALEIGH: 

BEATON  GALES,  PRINTER — REGISTER    OFFICE. 

1850. 


ADDEESS. 


Mr.  President  and  Gentlemen 

OF  the  Medical  Society  : 

In  complying  with  the  resolution  adopted  at  your  last 
meeting,  I  have  experienced  no  little  embarrassment  in 
the  selection  of  a  subject  on  which  to  address  you.  So 
many  and  so  important  are  the  topics  that  present  them- 
selves ;  so  wide  and  varied  the  field  ;  that  the  very  mul- 
tiplicity of  subjects  has  created  hesitation  in  the  selection. 

If  I  have  rightly  comprehended  the  object,  for  which 
this  society  was  formed,  it  is,  that  at  these  annual  meet- 
ings, each  member  should  in  turn,  to  the  extent  of  his 
ability,  contribute  what  might  add  to  the  dignity  of  the 
profession  ;  impart  information  ;  and  bind  together  in 
stronger  ties  of  fraternity,  its  different  members.  I  pro- 
pose therefore,  on  this  occasion,  Mr.  President,  as  I  con- 
sider this  to  be  merely  an  introduction  to  the  yearly  lec- 
ture, to  be  delivered  before  the  Society,  to  bring  to  your 
notice,  some  of  the  popular  objections  to  the  profession 
of  Medicine,  and  briefly  present  some  views  in  relation 
to  the  uncertainty  of  Medicine,  and  the  duties  and  re- 
sponsibilities of  the  Physician. 

[t  has  often  been  urged  as  an  objection  to  Medical 
Practitioners,  (and  perhaps  not  without  reason,)  that  they 
were  peculiarly  selfish  in  their  pursuits,  jealous  of  the 
success  of  their  competitors  for  popular  favor,  and  envious 
of  each  other.  That  this  feeling  is  often  indulged  to  an 
extent,  that  interferes  with  the  social  relations  of  life,  is 


4 


a  truth,  none,  I  presume,  will  deny  ;  and  if  its  effects 
were  to  stop  here,  society  would  hav^e  but  little  right  to 
complain — but  when  it  is  carried  into  the  professional  as 
well  as  the  social  affairs  of  life,  the  public  welfare  is 
concerned,  and  they  have  an  undoubted  right  to  amend- 
ment on  the  conduct  of  those,  who,  without  just  grounds, 
indulge  such  feelings. 

From  the  earliest  period  of  time,  when  the  science  of 
Medicine  began  to  assume  that  rank,  which  its  intrinsic 
importance  entitled  it  to  take  in  the  estimation  of  man- 
kind, the  world  has  been  divided  between  the  votaries  of 
learning,  and  the  mere  pretenders  to  the  healing  art ;  and 
it  was  as  natural  as  it  was  just,  that  those  who  had  de- 
voted their  time,  talents  and  pecuniary  means  in  acqui- 
ring by  a  long  course  of  laborious  stud)';  the  knowled.ire 
necessary  to  qualify  them  to  assume  the  responsible  and 
delicate  task  of  conservators  of  the  public  health,  should 
view  with  distrust,  the  Charlatan,  who,  with  nothing  to 
recommend  him  but  his  own  unblushing  impudence^ 
should,  by  practicing  a  fraud  on  the  credulity  of  some, 
and  the  ignorance  of  others,  reap  the  reward  which  should 
alone  be  due  to  merit.  It  was,  I  say,  natural  under  such 
circumstances,  such  results  should  be  produced,  but,  it  is 
a  reflection  on  the  profession,  that  such  feelings  should  be 
allowed  to  exist  among  brethren  of  the  same  calling  ; 
standing  on  the  same  platform  of  respectability  and  equal- 
ity. It  is  a  lamentable  truth,  that  with  us,  there  is  want- 
ing that  "  Esprit  du  Corps"  which  makes  each  member 
jealous,  not  of,  but  for^  the  honor  and  reputation  of  a  bro- 
ther— which  makes  him  at  all  times  and  on  all  proper  oc» 
casions,  the  defender  of  his  reputation. 

The  code  of  Medical  Ethics  adopted  by  the  Society,  is 
so  full  and  pointed  on  this  head,  that  I  might  be  spared 
the  time  of  adverting  to  it,  if  it  were  not  for  the  fact,  that 
however  plausible  and  beautiful  in  theory,  it  is  so  often 
neglected  in  practice. 


<.l»^-ti     A 


d 

Perhaps  there  is  no  one  present,  who  may  not  have  ob- 
served and  perhaps  felt  the  truth  of  the  assertion,  that 
professional  jealousy  is  often  destructive  of  professional 
usefulness,  injurious  to  the  public  welfare  and  derogatory 
to  the  character  of  Medical  men. 

It  will  doubtless  be  asked,  how  is  such  a  state  of  things 
to  be  avoided,  and  how  is  the  evil  to  be  remedied  ?  By 
what  process  can  the  character  of  men  be  so  changed  as 
to  bring  about  a  result  so  much  to  be  desired  ?  1  answer 
that  much  has  been  done  in  other  Slates  to  rectify  the 
evil,  by  the  formation  of  Medical  Societies,  by  which 
means,  the  members  of  the  profession  are  brought  into 
more  immediate  association;  friendships  are  formed  or 
previous  ones  confirmed  ;  character  is  developed  and  in- 
tellectual and  moral  worth  made  known  and  appreciated. 
1  look  upon  the  formation  of  this  Society  as  the  first  and 
most  important  step,  in  the  elevation  of  the  Medical  Pro- 
fession in  North  Carolina.  Hitherto,  we  have  lived  to 
ourselves  and  for  ourselves  ;  known  only  within  the  nar- 
row limits  of  our  professional  world,  we  live  and  pass  off 
the  stage,*  unknowing  and  unknown."  Now  we  have 
the  prospect  brightening;  each  succeeding  year  will  bring 
before  you  some  aspirant  for  professional  fame  ;  emula- 
tion will  be  aroused  ;  character  will  become  indispensa- 
ble ;  and  from  this  fountain  will  flow  feelings  of  kindness 
for  each  other  and  an  increased  desire  to  promote 
the  happiness  and  health  of  mankind.  What  nobler 
emulation  can  actuate  the  mind  of  man,  than  the  desire 
of  increased  usefulness  to  his  fellow  beings  ?  What  more 
likely  toexcite  this  desire  of  usefulness  and  thirst  for  knowl- 
edge, than  this  assembling  of  ourselves  together,  to  dis- 
cuss matters  pertaining  to  the  Healing  Art  ?  The  Pol.ti- 
cians  of  the  day  have  their  meetings  to  discuss  measures 
of  State  or  National  policy  ;  some,  fiom  a  sincere  desire 
to  promote  the  general  weal,  others,  it  is  to  be  feared,  to 
advance  selfish   or   designing  ends.     Gentlemen  of  the 


Legal  calling  meet  still  more  frequently  in  the  pursuit  of 
their  business,  where  they  can  discuss  questions  of  law  ; 
but  until  now  the  members  of  our  profession  have  had 
no  opportunity  of  consultation  in  general  assembly — 
each,  confined  to  his  dull  routine  of  daily  business,  has 
been  compelled  to  plod  on,  without  the  important  auxil- 
liary  of  concentrated  opinion.  Individual  energy  and 
talent  have  doubtless  effected  much  in  advancing  the  cause 
of  Science  in  every  department.  There  are  many  and 
strikings  proof  of  what  the  unaided  ingenuity  of  man 
can  accomplish.  Witness  the  discovery  and  appli- 
cation of  the  power  of  steam  by  Watt,  which  is  now 
brought  to  bear  so  successfully  on  many  of  the  industrial 
pursuits  of  life.  Witness  too,  the  more  recent  invention 
of  the  Telegraph,  by  means  of  which,  for  the  transmis- 
sion of  intelligence, space  is  annihilated,  and  the  messages 
of  love,  business  or  pleasure  are  transmitted  with  light- 
ning speed.  Yet  who  doubts  that  more  can  be  accom- 
plished by  the  concentration  of  mental  efforts,  by  com 
paring  the  experience  or  experiments  of  each  other  and 
by  giving  the  results  of  these  experiments? 

This  has  been  emphatically  called  the  age  of  progress. 
Every  thing  around  us  and  about  us,  seems  to  be  advan- 
cing. In  every  department  of  Science  or  Literature  ra- 
pid strides  have  been  made — the  inhabitants  of  the  world 
are  vieing  with  each  other  in  their  eftorts  to  promote 
the  prosperity  and  alleviate  the  condition  of  Mankind. 
Nor  have  the  Votaries  of  Medical  Science  been  laggards 
in  the  race  of  fame.  The  improvements  in  Chemistry 
and  Surgery  alone  attest  the  zeal  of  the  profession  and 
the  success  with  which  their  efforts  have  been  crowned. 
The  introduction  of  the  use  of  Chloroform  is  an  era  in 
the  annals  of  Medicine,  and  as  a  remedial  agent  deserves 
a  high  rank.  To  it,  Surgery  is  largely  iiidebted  ;  for  by 
its  use,  that  important  branch  of  our  profession  is  rob- 
bed of  half  its  terrors.     Under  its  tranquillizing  influence 


on  the  patient,  the  Surgeon  proceeds  to  the  performance 
of  the  most  delicate  and  important  operations  almost  with 
the  certainty  of  success,  that  he  is  not  to  be  disturbed  by 
the  groans  and  cries  of  his  subject.  Here  is  indeed  a 
triumph  of  which  the  skill  of  Man  may  well  be  proud  ; 
and  when  its  use  has  become  more  general,  in  the  hands 
of  the  judicious  practitioner,  humanity  will  have  addi- 
tional cause  of  gratitude  to  that  beneficent  Being  who 
enables  the  researches  of  his  creatures  to  find  out  an 
antidote  to  many  of  the  evils  that  man  so  often  inflicts 
on  himself. 

A  very  common  objection  to  the  Medical  profession  is 
its  uncertainty.  The  uncertainty  of  Medicine  is  a  topic  in 
all  circles,  and  \^et  it  is  one  which  is  very  generally  mis- 
understood. The  mistake  is  mainly  as  to  the  nature  of 
this  uncertainty,  its  causes,  its  influence  in  the  treatment 
of  disease,  and  the  best  methods  of  guarding  against  the 
errors  into  which  it  is  liable  to  lead  us.  These  errors  are 
so  numerous  and  interfere  so  constantly  with  the  useful- 
ness of  the  Physican  among  all  classes  of  people,  that 
the  subject  has  become  one  of  vast  practical  impor- 
tance. It  is  important  not  only  to  the  Physician,  but  to 
the  people,  and  to  them  especially  ;  for  they  are  the  suf- 
lerers  from  the  multiform  and  often  fatal  injuries,  which 
these  errors  engender.  The  causes  which  make  diseases 
complicated,  and  render  the  Science  of  Medicine,  and 
consequently,  its  practice,  uncertain,  are  numerous  ;  they 
are  familiar  to  the  well-informed  and  observant  physi- 
cian, but  are  often  overlooked  by  the  community  general- 
ly. They  consist  in  the  sympathy  which  exists  between 
the  different  organs  of  the  bod}^ — in  the  influence  of  un- 
seen agents  or  causes — in  individual  peculiarities  of  con- 
stitution, and  in  mental  influences.  That  these,  individ- 
ually or  collectively,  exert  a  powerful  influence  in  modi- 
fying the  various  forms  of  disease,  no  one,  I  presume,  will 
question,  and  the  conviction  which  has  been  forced  upon 


8  * 

my  mind,  is  that,  of  all  the  causes  which  becloud  the 
path  of  the  Physician  in  his  attempts  to  elucidate  disease, 
the  influence  of  the  mind  upon  the  body  is  the  greatest — 
for  it  never  should  be  forgotten  in  our  observation  of  dis- 
ease, that  we  have  not  to  deal  with  the  body  alone,  but 
with  the  body  inhabited  by  a  mind,  which  is  connected 
with  every  particle  of  that  body  by  countless  nervous  fil- 
aments, and  therefore  acting  through  them  upon  it,  and 
aflfecting  to  a  greater  or  less  degree,  all  its  diseased  con- 
ditions. The  influence  of  causes  acting  through  the  mind 
is  often  concealed  from  our  view,  and  even  when  it  can 
■  be  plainly  seen  it  is  difficult  to  estimate  its  amount  with 
correctness.  Eff'ects  are  often  produced  through  the 
mind,  which  are  attributed  by  the  patient,  and  sometimes 
by  the  Physician,  to  some  remedy  that  has  been  adminis- 
tered.  According  to  a  generally  received  opinion,  there 
is  a  complex  operation  of  the  mind,  and  it  may  there- 
fore be  readily  and  rationally  supposed  to  be  liable  to 
disorder,  thus  exerting  a  powerful  though  unseen  influ- 
ence on  the  many  bodily  ills,  which  flesh  is  heir  to. 

In  some  respects,  the  mind  appears  to  be  governed  by 
laws  analagous  to  those  which  govern  the  body;  for  as 
continued  inaction  deprives  the  body  of  the  power  of 
moving,  so  inactivity  of  mind  deprives  z^  of  the  power  of 
acting.  To  this  in  a  great  measure  is  to  be  ascribed 
that  loss  of  mental  vigor,  which  so  often  attends  declin- 
ing age:  at  this  period,  fame  ceases  her  allurements; 
ambition  begins  to  lose  its  power ;  life  has  little  more  to 
promise,  the  animal  spirits  are  languid,  infirmity  unfits 
the  body  for  the  exercise  of  mind,  and  the  individual 
gradually  and  unconsciously  remits  that  exercise,  and  at 
last  falls  into  dotage.  But  not  only  in  old  age  does  inac- 
tivity show  its  deleterious  eflTects  on  the  mind.  We  often 
see  or  hear  of  men,  who  in  early  life  gave  the  fairest 
promise  of  future  eminence,  who,  when  they  have  reach- 
ed their  prime,  not  merely  have  made  no  progress  in 


mental  improvement,  but  have  rather  retrogaded,  and  to- 
gether with  the  loss  of  acquired  knowledge,  have  lost  the 
thirst  for  it — exhibiting  the  melancholy  sight  of  the  waste 
of  talents  and  the  wreck  of  mind.  This  may  sometimes 
be  occasioned  by  their  having  been  placed  in  circum- 
stances unfavorable  to  their  peculiar  turn  of  mind,  for 

"Many  a  soul  sublime. 
Has  felt  the  influence  of  malignant  Star." 

But  oftener,  another  cause  is  very  evident — elated  with 
the  praise  bestowed  upon  their  early   talents,  they  con- 
ceive that  without  regular  exertion,  which  is  the  pabu- 
lum of  the  mind,  they  can  by  their  superior  powers  at- 
tain any  object.    Depending  on  this,  they  allow  inactivity, 
like  a  canker,  to  prey  upon  the  mind,  producing  a  morbid 
train  of  feeling  which,  if  not  timely  corrected,  must  and 
will  produce  its  corresponding  effects  on  the  physical  or- 
ganization.    Who   is  there,  who   has  not  watched  the 
workings  of  his  own  consciousness,  and  has  not  discover- 
ed that  at  certains  periods  he  has  an  aptitude  for  certain 
pursuits,  he  knows  not  why,  and  at  others  an  inaptitude, 
which  renders  such  pursuits  fruitless  and  impossible  ? — 
What  individual  is  there,  who  has  not  occasionally  felt 
that  in  his  choicest  moments  of  inspiration,  when  all  his 
energies  were  best  attuned  to  the  pursuit  of  the  object 
before  him,  there  has  been,  despite  his  own  will,  and  in 
contravention  of  his  ow^n  desires,  some  disturbing  idea 
developed  as  an  involuntary  point  of  consciousness  ;  and 
this  disturbing  cause  has  been  so  utterly  discordant  and 
alien  from  the  previous  object  of  his  inquiry,  as  thorough- 
ly to  destroy  that  continuous  chain  of  thought,  which  in- 
capacitates him  forthe  time,  for  further  prosperous  study? 
Who  is  there,  who  has  looked  back   upon  the  history  of 
bis  own  life;  who  has  looked  abroad  into  society;  who 
has  reasoned  upon  its  elements,  and  has  not  seen,  in  his  in- 
dividual case  and  in  the  case  of  others,  that  the  best  diges- 
ted plans  and  best  calculated  efforts  have  been  rendered 
I  2 


10 


fruitless  by  the  intervention  of  discordant  causes,  over 
which  he  had  no  control  ;  and  has  not  perceived*  that  the 
best  institutions  of  society  have  been  rendered  nugatory 
— ^that  the  bonds  of  the  social  and  political  compact 
have  been  weakened — that  the  wealth,  and  the  power, 
and  the  prosperit}-,  and  the  peace  of  nations  have 
been  subverted — that  the  happiness,  and  comfort  and 
worth  of  the  whole  family  of  man  have  been?  annihilated, 
by  the  agencies  of  discordant  materials,  over  which  they 
had  no  efficient  control  ?  It  is  then  a  principle  in  the 
very  constitution  ol  man's  existence,  that  there  will  every 
where  be  found  the  operation  of  discordant  and  antago- 
nistic agpncie.5  which  will  introduce  discrepancy  into 
his  best  calculated  plans  of  agenc}  ;  and  the  operation 
of  this  principle  is  universal,  extending  to,  and  exerting 
an  influence  on,  the  mental  and  physical  organizations. 

The  science  of  Medicine,  in  all  its  departments,  is  in  a 
very  changeable  state  ;  the  discoveries,  which  are  made 
from  time  to  time  in  Anatomy,  Ph3^siology  and  Pathology, 
the  theories  which  are  put  forth  and  the  new  remedies 
and  modes  of  treataient  which  are  continually  proposed, 
keep  up  a  constant  excitement  in  the  profession.  There 
are  no  authorities  [-roperly  so  called  in  Medicine.  The 
Theologian  has  his  standard  authors,  who  are  a  kind  of 
authority  to  which  he  appeals,  and  above  all,  he  has  the 
BiBi.E  as  an  unerring  standard.  The  Lavvj-er  also,  has 
his  standard  works,  in  which  are  embodied  the  princi- 
ples of  law,  and  they  are  settled  authorities  to  which  he 
can  appeal.  In  Medicine,  on  the  contrary,  though  there 
are  works  which  contain  the  principles  of  the  Science, 
they  have  none  of  that  fixed  and  undisputed  authority, 
which  Standard  works  on  other  subjects  are  apt  to  have. 
While  the  lawyer  appeals  to  the '"law,"  and  the  divine 
to  the  "  law"  and  the  *'  testimon}^"  the  doctor  often  as- 
sumes the  right  of  disputing  all  authority,  from  Hypocra- 
tes  down  to  the  present  time,  and  this  very  circumstance 
lessens  the  respectability  of  the  prossession,  causes  doubts 


11 


in  the  minds  of  ihe  people  as  to  the  value  of  the  Science 
and  adds  to  the  uncertainty  of  the  Healing  Art.  The 
Physician  is  continually  meeting  with  evidence  of  this. 

And  we  ought  not  to  be  surprised  that  the  great  mass 
of  mankind^  should  so  easily  and  so  willingly  become  the 
dupes  of  that  class  of  empirics,  who  in  the  present  day 
over-run  the  world  with  their  Catholicons,  Panaceas  and 
universal  Restoratives  ?  Nor  should  we  wonder,  in  view 
of  the  admitted  influence  which  the  mind  exercises  over 
the  body,  at  the  popular  belief  now  so  common,  in  the 
curative  effects  of  many  of  the  worthless,  if  not  pernicious 
nostrums,  so  profusely  sold  over  the  whole  country? 
Paracelsus  was  called  the  Prince  of  Quacks,  and  England 
was,  but  America  now  may  be,  styled  the  Paradise  of 
Quacks. 

It  has  sometimes  been  said,  that  the  Ph3^sician,  from  his 
familiarity  with  scenes  of  distress,  becomes  unfeeling  and 
incapable  of  sympathising  with  others.  This  may  be 
true  of  him,  if  from  the  first  he  look  at  the  sufferings  of 
his  fellow  men,  only  as  a  source  of  profit  to  himself.  If 
he  at  the  out-set  enthrones  this  perfectly  selfish  and 
therefore  hardening  princi[)le  in  his  bosom,  he  will  of 
course  become  devoid  of  sympathy  and  benevolence.  But 
if  he  does  not  this  strange  violence  to  his  natural  feel- 
ings, but  lets  them  flow  out  as  he  goes  forth  on  his  daily 
errands  of  relief  and  mercy  to  the  rich  and  the  poor,  and 
especially,  if  he  be  faithful  to  the  poor,  who  can  give  him 
nothing  but  their  blessings  and  their  prayers,  his  sympa- 
th}^  and  kindness  will  be  drawm  out  under  such  a  variety 
of  circumstances,  that  they  will  become  more  active,  in- 
stead of  blunted  and  repressed.  True,  he  will  not  have 
that  mawkish  sensibility,  which  vents  itself  in  tears  and 
mere  expression  of  sympathy,  but  stops  short  of  action.  If 
ever  he  had  any  such  romantic  aud  unpractical  sensibili- 
ty, he  has  cast  it  off  in  his  actual  service  in  the  field  of 
benevolence  into  which  his  profession  has  necessarily  led 
hira.     He  has  learned  over  and  over  the  lesson  of  active 


12 


sympathy.     He  has  learned  it  often  under  circumstances 
of  discouragement  and  sometimes  without  even  the  show 
of  gratitude  being  offered  to  him.     He  has  learned,  (lam 
glad  to  say,  and  1  say  it  with  some  pleasing  recollections,) 
with  signs  of  gratitude  in  his  patients  which  are  not  to  be 
mistaken      He  may  appear  to  the  casual  observer  to  have 
merged  the  feelings  of  the  man  in  those  of  the  physician 
— to  have  surrendered  his  humanity  to  the  cold  and  stern 
demands  of  science.     He    may  appear   to  be    devoid  of 
sympathy,  as  he  goes  to   work  mid  scenes  of  suffering 
without  a  sigh,  performing  his  duties  with  an  unblanched 
face,  a  cool  and  collected  air,  and   a  steady  hand,  w^hile 
all  arounil  are  full  of  fear  and  trembling  and  pity.     Yet, 
there  is  sympathy  in  his  bosom,  but  it  is  active;  it  vents  it- 
self in  the  right  way,  in  action.     There  is  feeling  there — 
it  is  not  destroyed,  but  its  manifestations  are  under  con- 
trol.    It  is  from  this  povyer  of  control  which   he  has  ac- 
quired,  that  the  Physician   or  Surgeon  may  appear  to 
others  to  be  without  feeling,  even  when  a  tide  of  emotion 
may  be  pressing  his  heart  almost  to  bursting,  because  he 
knows  that  a  valuable    life  is  hanging  upon   those  very 
exertions,  which  he  is  making  with  all  the  seeming  cool- 
ness of  indifference.     Before   the   moment   of  action  ar- 
rives, his  emotions  are  often   oppressive,  more   so  than 
those  of  the  by  slanders  ;  for  he  knows  all  the  difficulties 
and  dangers  of  the  case,  and  sees  the  point  which  should 
excite  anxiety.     Watch  him  while  preparing  for  a  serious 
operation.     Though  he  may  appear  to   the   careless  ob- 
server perfectly  cool  and  undisturbed,  you  may  see  in  his 
unguarded  moments  a  betrayal  of  the  strong  under  current 
of  feeling,  which  he  endeavors  to  conceal.     The  occasion- 
al sigh,  followed  perhaps  by  an  incidental  remark  to  a  by- 
stander, as  a  diversion  to  his  feelings — the  slightly  tremb- 
ling hand,  as  he  busies  himself  in  making  his  prepara- 
tions, thus  findmg  relief  to  the  pressure  of  the  excitement 
within,  by  external  acts,  some  of  them  perhaps  needless — 


13 


these  and  other  signs  show  it — and  these  signs  may  ap- 
pear up  to  the  last  moment  of  delay.  But  the  instant  he 
begins  the  operation,  they  are  gone.  The  hand  may 
tremble,  till  the  knife  touches  the  flesh  and  the  blood  be- 
gins to  flow — then  it  becomes  firm  and  steady,  for  his 
feelings  have  found  relief  in  action.  Feeling  may  and 
does  resume  its  hold  when  the  action  ceases,  and  if  the 
action  ends  in  relief,  it  manifests  itself  in  a  joyful  and 
triumphant  sympathy.  It  is  the  conquest  which  the  Phy- 
sician obtains  over  his  nervous  susceptibility  and  this 
seeming  indifference  to  the  sufferings  of  others,  that  has 
given  rise  to  the  erroneous  impression,  that  the  practice 
of  Medicine  and  Surgery  necessarily  subjects  the  heart 
to  a  hardening  process.  But  it  is  evident  to  all  reflecting 
minds,  that  while  he  is  acquiring  this  self  control,  his 
sympathy  with  suff*ering  is  becoming  deeper  and  livelier, 
the  oftener  it  is  called  into  action. 

The  relation  which  the  Physician  sustains  to  the  com- 
munity, is  a  peculiar  one  ;  no  other  man  has  so  free  ac- 
cess to  so  many  families  among  all  classes  of  society  ; 
he  is  admitted  into  the  very  bosom  of  the  families,  upon 
which  be  attends  ;  so  much  is  this  case,  that  most  per- 
sons have  the  feeling  that  their  Physician  is  a  sort  of 
confident,  and  on  that  ground  they  are  willing  that  he 
should  see  and  hear,  in  his  daily  intercourse  with  them, 
what  would  be  improper  to  be  seen  and  heard,  without 
the  confidence  of  intimate  friendship  ;  and  when  that 
confidence  is  abused,  how  gross  the  abuse,  and  how  keen- 
l}'  is  it  felt  by  those,  who  have,  as  a  matter  of  necessity, 
reposed  that  confidence  !  I  say  necessit}',  for  the  very 
nature  of  the  intercourse  of  the  Physician  with  his  pa- 
tients is  such,  as  to  make  this  confidence  necessary  ;  and 
the  necessity  is  recognized  by  both  parties. 

I  do  not  refer  now,  merely  to  the  secrets,  which,  either 
from  choice  or  necessity,  are  so  often  confided  to  the 
Medical  man  by  his  patients  ;  but,  I  refer  to  the  confi- 


14 


1 


dential  character  which  marks  his  whole  intercourse  with 
therri,  extending  to  all  those  little  nameless  acts  which 
make  up  that  intercourse.  He  enters  the  dwelling  of  the 
sick,  as  if  he  were  one  of  the  family  ;  and  the  very  office 
he  is  to  perform,  disarms  all  formality,  and  pre-supposes 
intercourse  of  the  most  familiar  character.  The  patient 
is  to  speak  to  him,  not  of  a  foreign  subject,  not  of  some 
one  else,  but  of  himself,  of  his  own  body,  and  that  too 
with  sufficient  minuteness  to  communicate  an  adequate 
knowledge  of  his  case.  In  doing  this,  he  calTs  into  exer- 
cise not  only  the  scientific  acumen  of  the  Physician,  but, 
mingled  with  this,  the  sympathy  of  the  confidential  friend. 

Sustaining  then  as  the  physician  does,  so  intimate  a 
relationship  to  his  patients,  his  opportunities  for  influen- 
cing those  around  blm  must  be  greater  than  falls  to  the 
lot  of  those  who  occupy  commanding  stations  in  society. 
Every  man  has  more  influence  in  his  own  little  commu 
nity  at  home  by  his  fire-side,  than  he  has  abroad  in  the 
great  community  around  him.  Familiarity,  mutual  confi- 
dence  and  sympathy  are  the  obvious  causes  of  this  ;  and 
the  Physician  may  be  said  to  be  at  home  ever}'  where 
by  everybody's  fireside  ;  in  the  mansion  and  in  the  cottage, 
in  the  garnished  chamber  of  the  wealthy,  and  in  the  hum- 
ble  garret  of  the  poor. 

It  is  a  matter  of  every  day's  occurrence  that  he  should 
be  at  home  in  all  these  varied  scenes,  and  he  acquires  a 
tact  in  accomodating  himself  to  them,  and  to  the  endless 
diversity  of  character  which  they  present.  Wherever  he 
goes  he  enters  the  family  circle.  He  is  received  ordina- 
rily without  any  preparation  and  at  any  hour  when  ne. 
cessity  calls  for  it.  He  sees  his  patients,  too,  in  every 
variety  of  situation,  and  in  just  those  circumstances  cal- 
culated to  develope  character.  He  sees  them  in  their 
unguarded  moments  and  when  sufferings  and  trials  of 
every  variety  are  acting  upon  them  as  tests,  searching 
and  sure.     He  sees  much  that  glitters  before  the  world, 


15 


become  the  merest  dross  in  the  sick  chamber — and  he 
sees  too  the  gold  shining  bright  in  the  crucible  of  afflic- 
tion. He  sees  human  passion  in  ever}'  form — implacable 
hatred  and  love  stronger  than  death  ;  fallen  virtue,  and 
virtue  tried  ;  and  proud  mental  and  moral  strength  ;  and 
childish  imbecility  in  the  once  mighty  and  great — every 
feeling,  or  passion,  or  quality,  or  condition,  that  can  be 
imagined,  in  ever}^  possible  variet}'^  of  phase  and  degree, 
is  displayed  to  his  view.  But  it  is  in  the  sick  room  especial- 
ly, that  the  influence  of  the  Physician  is  chiefly  felt; 
here  he  treads  upon  sacred  ground  and  has  to  do  with 
the  issues  of  life  and  death;  here  he  sees  man  in  the 
weakness  of  his  humanity,  "crushed  before  the  moth,*^  but 
often  too,  in  the  strength  of  his  immortality.  Here  he  is 
made  a  witness  of  the  frailty  of  the  tenement,  which  the 
immortal  spirit  inhabits.  He  has  communion  with  the 
spirit  in  its  most  momentous  hours  ;  while  it  sees  the  walls 
of  its  habitation  crumbling  into  dust,  and  lingers  about  the 
ruins  before  its  final  flight  into  a  world  either  of  light  or 
darkness,  of  jo}'  or  of  woe. 

A  great  responsibilit}'  rests  upon  the  Physician. — 
He  is  often  called  on  to  minister  relief,  where  no  human 
skill  can  avail ;  he  is  looked  to,  in  the  dark  hours  of  af- 
fliction, with  confident  hope  by  the  friends  of  the  sufferer, 
when  alas  1  hope  is  cut  off,  and  he  is  conscious  of  his  own 
inability  to  meet  their  requirements.  This,  to  one  of  be- 
nevolent feelings,  is  a  severe  trial  ;  it  is  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, that  the  Physician  becomes  practically  ac- 
quainted with  the  uncertainty  of  his  art,  and  the  insuffi 
ciency  of  human  efforts.  How  important  then,  that  he 
should  exercise  that  severe  discipline  over  himself,  which 
enables  him  to  perform  all  the  varied  duties  pertaining 
to  his  intercourse  with  his  fellow^man,  with  a  due  re- 
gard to  their  feelings  and  to  the  honor  of  the  profession. 

Having  performed  the  task  assigned  me,  Mr.  President, 
imperfectly  I  know,  allow  me  to  express  the  hope,  that 


16 


the  effort  which  has  been  made  to  place  the  Medical  Pro- 
fession in  this  State,  on  its  proper  footing,  will  not  be 
relaxed  ;  but  that  renewed  and  unremitted  exertions  will 
be  continued,  until  the  Medical  Society  of  North  Caroli- 
na shall  haye  enrolled  on  its  list  of  members,  all  who  re- 
gard its  honor  and  its  interests.  That,  at  these  annual 
meetings,  we  may,  by  the  interchange  of  acts  of  courtesy 
and  kindness,  draw  more  closely  the  bonds  of  friendship 
which  should  unite  us;  and  as  we  are  conscious  of  the 
uncertainty  of  our  calling  and  the  solemn  responsibility 
resting  on  us,  we  shall  endeavor  by  every  means  in  our 
power,  to  rescue  our  profession  from  the  obloquy  which 
surrounds  it. 


